emarketer posts

Digital video is more exciting now than ever before. In the last few years, streaming has come into its own, bringing a unique ecosystem with it. Between an evolving content landscape, the challenge of curating and maintaining audiences, and a deluge in new devices on which to stream content, there are significant opportunities available for content creators, distributors, and consumers alike.

With the increased influence of mobile devices and connected TVs in today's market, the industry has been forced to expand in order to accommodate the growing demand for ubiquitous entertainment across all digital platforms.

"We're getting to a point where being screen-agnostic is the only way to approach consumers because they watch more videos on every platform," Ran Harnevo told eMarketer in an interview for their Digital Video Streaming Report. "At the same time, when it comes to creating video, length and format are highly influenced by the distribution method at hand."

"There's an appetite for all lengths of content. Usually, time spent is dictated by screen size," continued Harnevo. "The smaller the screen, the smaller the attention span. If you go with connected TVs, play with longer forms. With mobile, be short."

Coming on the heels of our successful Digital Content NewFront in late April, we announced today that we are holding the first ever Programmatic Upfront event on Sept. 23 -- the first day of Advertising Week 2013 -- for more than 150 clients, media, analysts and investors. The theme of the AOL Networks Programmatic Upfront is "Programmatic Explodes Creativity." We will celebrate the creativity headed our way as technology, data and automation free up marketers and agencies to do wildly imaginative things.

Since the 1970s, TV has been the primary beneficiary of upfront buying. In the last two years, digital has also held upfronts, with a heavy emphasis on video inventory. But as chief marketing officers and other brand stewards come to terms with the reality that proving ad spend ROI is "the new black", there is every reason to believe advertisers will soon be willing to pre-allocate media budgets against large scale display inventory.

The online advertising industry has created a fear and chaos-based environment filled with hundreds of small companies each pitching highly technical necessities to drive digital spend and achieve ROI. At AOL, we believe this must change. CMO's can't embrace digital much further without a simpler connection between people and platforms. They can't shift their budgets from TV until we - as an industry - demonstrate the true power of digital to unlock creativity.

We believe this is the first of what will become an annual industry event -- just like the Digital NewFronts. At AOL, we want to lead this new revolution and help define a new way of buying in the programmatic space.

Recent stats from eMarketer show just how big this business is and will be in the coming years. eMarketer estimates U.S. advertisers will spend more than $3.36 billion on real-time bidding this year, up from just under $2 billion in 2012 and less than $1 billion in 2011. eMarketer expects double-digit increases in spending each year through 2017, when real-time bidding will account for more than $8.49 billion in digital ad spending-or 29% of all digital display spending.*

The event will feature marketers and agency executives who will showcase the business rationale that illustrates why upfront programmatic commitments are critical to their business strategy. Speakers will talk about the creative revolution that is made possible by automation.

Brand, agency and industry participants in the AOL Networks Programmatic Upfront will be announced at a later date.